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墨書 Inktalez
Awo! Awo!
It really launched an attack!
The Malayan Bear let out a low, rumbling roar, its claws lightly pressing against the ground as it suddenly stood up. With its massive paws, it struck its chest fiercely. The sound of the impact was a deep and terrifying thud.
The roar also woke up the bowl and Xiao Xiao. The bowl wasn’t scared, just found it amusing. Xiao Xiao, however, looked panicked, scanning the surroundings and not seeing me, which only heightened her fear. She stared blankly at the Malayan Bear, gripping her clothes tightly with both hands.
The bear lunged forward suddenly, and as I faced the foul stench and gust of wind coming from it, my sense of responsibility overwhelmed any fear I felt. The impending crisis ignited the strongest desire within me—the urge to conquer everything. Gradually, I charged towards the bear. The moment I grabbed the Malayan Bear, my dagger fell to the ground.
The bear's claws were immensely powerful; a single strike could easily break ribs or even threaten my life. Therefore, I had to avoid being hit at all costs. Its teeth were razor-sharp, capable of snapping bones without issue. I could only attack its back. I lunged forward and seized its neck with both hands!
A fierce struggle ensued between man and bear, our roars echoing loudly in the cave.
"Bring it on!" I shouted angrily, pushing off with my legs and wrapping my arms tightly around the Malayan Bear’s neck with all my strength.
Damn it, I actually managed to choke it… It was naturally unwilling to go down without a fight, slamming me against the cave walls. With each impact, I felt my internal organs jolt violently, almost making me cough up blood.
Roar!
Bang! Bang! Bang!
A series of violent collisions made my vision blur. Damn it, this demon is too strong; I couldn’t hold it back at all. Xiao Xiao watched with wide eyes… frozen in place, while the bowl trembled and shakily approached. After all, she had lost her spiritual power and was no different from an ordinary woman. Yet she mustered the courage to run over and picked up the dagger from the ground. She plunged it fiercely into the bear’s heart; blood gushed out in a spray that stained everything within three or four meters around us red—turning me into a bloody mess.
The warm blood made me feel sticky all over!
Before the bowl could pull out the dagger, there was a dull thud followed by a piercing howl… The Malayan Bear fell backward with a crash, completely pinning me to the ground. It took me quite some effort to crawl out from underneath it, nearly forcing out everything inside me.
After pulling out the dagger, I stared blankly at the Malayan Bear, shouting, "Don't blame me, it wasn't intentional!" Damn it, anyone with eyes could see it was a deliberate act of murder. Now she was playing the saint! But in my eyes, her position had changed entirely.
I looked at Xiao Xiao, who appeared dazed, and quickly reassured her, "It's fine now. A bear that hasn't even grown all its fur can be easily dealt with. We’ll have meat to eat!" Xiao Xiao, clearly someone who had been through storms herself, adjusted her mindset quickly after my words. Meanwhile, Wan was completely carefree; after letting out a sigh of relief, she collapsed onto the ground and fell asleep in a sprawled position.
I took the dagger and washed off the blood in the stream before returning to strip off my clothes and sit by the campfire.
Xiao Xiao was still awake, watching me. I smiled and said, "Ladies first. It's not dawn yet; you can continue sleeping. Living in a cave is different from sleeping in a house. It's not unusual for wild beasts to come at night; you'll get used to it."
Xiao Xiao brushed her hair back and soon fell asleep again...
Indeed, the night outside was not peaceful. There were frequent loud noises—bushes being hacked apart and the stream making huge sounds.
I thought this couldn't go on; staying up all night would wear me out. Moreover, living in this cave wasn't comfortable. We also couldn't return home yet; there were still matters to handle domestically, and going back would lead to dead ends. Considering all this, I thought it might be necessary to hide out on this land for a while. Eventually, I would need to build a wooden house by the sea. First, it would provide an open view for observation. Second, it would allow me to spot any vessels in the sea promptly. As for water sources, there was already a stream here; that was no problem at all.
After much contemplation, I realized that before I knew it, the stars had faded away, and the eastern sky began to lighten. The mist in the forest dissipated as dawn approached. Various birds started chirping again. It was then that I carefully observed the black bear; its fur was thick and appeared extremely strong. The bear's claws were exceptionally sharp, which made me feel a chill run down my spine.
I could barely drag the Malayan Bear's weight. I pulled it to the riverbank and found a piece of green stone to skin it completely. The bear skin was soft but somewhat prickly; however, it would be more than enough for making a blanket. Animal hides needed to be tanned.
To tan the hide, I trimmed off the hardened edges with a knife and rubbed the skin until it became soft and pliable, dusting off any rice flour if available. If rice flour wasn't available, plant tubers could also be considered. The purpose of tanning is twofold: first to soften the hide and second for better preservation to prevent hair loss. In such wilderness conditions, only simple methods could be employed.
I first cleaned the hide thoroughly, scraping off tendons and leftover meat with my dagger before soaking it in muddy water. After about twenty minutes, I took it out once. After three hours or so, I found several sticks and tied them into a cross shape to fully stretch out the hide. Then I scraped it once more with my dagger; once dried under the sun, I would have an excellent piece of fur.
After slaughtering the Malayan Bear, I removed all its internal organs promptly to clean them out. The organs spoil easily and need immediate cooking. While processing the bear meat, I sent Xiao Xiao and Wan to the seaside to dry some salt and look for driftwood if possible or dig up some plant tubers.
Bear bile is cooling and has certain medicinal value; however, using bear bile is strongly discouraged. Killing this bear was out of necessity for survival. Eating its meat and organs was purely driven by physiological needs. Damn it! If you don’t eat, you’ll starve! When stranded on a deserted island like this, those so-called moral constraints will vanish in no time at all.
I cut off the Bear Heart and Liver and Gallbladder, only to find my stomach completely empty. I meticulously prepared the innards and chopped off four bear paws, cleaning up for quite a while before everything was tidy. The bowl and Xiao Xiao had not yet returned. I wrapped the innards in broad leaves to prevent flies from buzzing around. Next, I needed to gather some spices to make the dish even more delicious.
When one is well-fed, thoughts of culinary delights arise; this is true for people everywhere.
I walked into the thicket and was surprised to discover an abundance of spices here. Wild Mint, with its refreshing aroma, was something I hadn't smelled in a long time. I picked a leaf and put it in my mouth. This plant releases oils rich in aromatic compounds like menthol and menthone.
I also spotted a clump of Ginger Grass, also known as Lemon Grass, which is an annual herb from the Lamiaceae family, primarily containing Lemonaldehyde as its fragrant component. Venturing further into the thicket, I even found Mountain Pepper, Mountain Cangshu, Mountain Ginger, and Giant Ginger. I gathered a large handful of spices—enough to last me half a month.
Excitedly, I returned to the cave, where the bowl and Xiao Xiao had safely come back as well. She brought a box of coarse salt stored in a coconut shell, and to my surprise, she also returned with an iron bucket about the size of a water bucket, similar to those used for mixing paint. With this addition, we could enjoy a delicious meal of Bear Meat.
"The innards are perishable and should be eaten first. Some fresh meat can last one or two days. The rest needs to be smoked before consumption, so let's deal with the innards today!" Upon hearing this, they were delighted; it had been a long time since they had eaten meat.
As soon as I finished speaking, Xiao Xiao and the bowl began to get busy. They carefully chopped up the innards and suggested cooking by the stream. Soon we had a campfire going by the water's edge. I instructed them, "You all keep busy here; I'm going to gather some wood from inside. We'll need it tonight!"
The moment I stepped into the forest, I heard rustling sounds coming from the dense bushes, as if some large animal was lurking nearby...
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